CE Europa
Club Esportiu Europa is a Spanish/Catalan sports club, based in the Gràcia district of Barcelona. The club is best known for its football team who in 1929, along with city neighbours FC Barcelona and RCD Espanyol, were founder members of La Liga. During the late 1990s they won the Copa Catalunya twice in succession, on both occasions beating FC Barcelona in the final. They currently play in Group 5 of the Tercera División. The club also has one of the oldest basketball teams in Spain and on December 8, 1922 they hosted Laietà BC in the first ever organised basketball game played in the country. During the 1920s the basketball team were also Catalan champions on two occasions. History Golden Age CE Europa was originally founded on June 5, 1907 following a merger between Madrid de Barcelona and Provençal. In 1919 the football team won the B division of the Campionat de Catalunya. After beating CE Jupiter 3-1 and 4-0 in a play-off for the title, they then defeated Athletic Sabadell 7-0 and 9-0 in a promotion play-off. During the 1920s, after FC Barcelona, CE Europa emerged as the second strongest team in Catalonia. In both 1921 and 1922 they finished as runners-up in the Campionat de Catalunya before winning the title in 1923 under coach Ralph Kirby. After finishing level on points with FC Barcelona, they then beat them 1-0 in a title play-off. They subsequently represented Catalonia in the Copa del Rey and after defeating Sevilla FC and Sporting Gijón in earlier rounds, they lost 1-0 to Athletic Bilbao in the final at the ''Les Corts''. Kirby subsequently went to coach FC Barcelona during the 1925-26 season. CE Europa finished as runners-up in the Campionat a further four times during the 1920s and in 1928 their impressive record saw them invited to join the very first La Liga. However they spent only three seasons in the Primera División and in 1931, despite the return of Ralph Kirby they were relegated to the Segunda División. Catalunya FC In 1931 CE Europa merged with Gràcia FC, formerly known as FC Espanya de Barcelona, and briefly became known as Catalunya FC. However the merger was not a success and during the 1931-32 season Catalunya FC, with three games to go, were unable to complete their fixture list due to financial reasons. As a result the fifteen games they had played in the Segunda División were annulled and the team were relegated to the Tercera División. The club then reverted to the name CE Europa in 1932. Club Deportivo Europa In 1941 a decree issued by Franco banned the use of non-Castilian names and the Catalan Club Esportiu was replaced with Club Deportivo. During this era the clubs only success came when they won the Copa Federación in 1944. This competition featured the teams from both the Segunda División and the Tercera División that had failed to qualify for the Copa del Rey. During the late 1950s and 1960s the club enjoyed a brief revival. After twice winning the Moscardó Trophy, a competition for Catalan teams in the Tercera División, they were then Tercera División champions in both 1962 and 1963. On the latter occasion they succeeded in gaining promotion to the Segunda División. However by the end of the decade they back in the Tercera División after being relegated in 1968. Copa Catalunya In both 1997 and 1998 CE Europa won the Copa Catalunya, beating FC Barcelona in both finals. In the 1997 final they faced a team coached by Bobby Robson and including Amor and Hristo Stoichkov and won 3-1. In the 1998 final they held the likes of Amor, Sergi, Iván de la Peña, Fernando Couto, Juan Antonio Pizzi and Michael Reiziger to a 1-1 draw at the Mini Estadi. They then clinched the trophy 3-1 on penalties. Honours Football *'Copa del Rey' ** Runners-Up 1922-23 *'Championat de Catalunya ** ''Winners 1922-23: 1''' ** Runners-Up 1920-21, 1921–22, 1923–24, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1928-29: '''6 *'Copa Catalunya: 2' **1996-97, 1997–98 *'Championat de Catalunya B: 1' **1918-19 *'Tercera División: 2' **1961-62, 1962–63 *'Copa Federación: 1' **1943-44 * Moscardó Trophy: 2 **1958-59, 1962–63 Basketball * Catalan Championship: 2 **1924, 1926 Season to season |valign="top" width=51%| |} |valign="top" width=51%| |} ---- *'3' seasons in La Liga *'5' seasons in Segunda División *'1' seasons in Segunda División B *'48' seasons in Tercera División *'7' season in Categorías Regionales Current squad Famous players * Zoltán Czibor * Antonio de la Cruz * Manel Cros * Marià Gonzalvo * Antoni Ramallets * Eulogio Martínez see also Selected Former Managers * Ralph Kirby (1920s, 1930s) * Josep "Pep" Rovira * Josep Moratella * Tintín Márquez Club Anthem Europa, Europa, Europa sempre endavant !! no tinguem por del que vindrà el futur hem de guanyar !! Europa, Europa, Europa sempre endavant !! que la nostra fe en la victòria a tothom faci vibrar Portem amb orgull el blau escapulari sentim els colors ben endintre del cor Europa, Europa, Europa sempre endavant !! que la nostra fe en la victòria a tothom faci vibrar... i que la nostra gran història poc a poc poguem retrobar EUROPA, EUROPA, EUROPA... ENDAVANT, ENDAVANT !! Words and Music: Robert Baquero Listen to the "hymn" by clicking here: http://www.ceeuropa.cat/web/html/ElClub/Himne.mp3 External links *CE Europa Official Website *Penya Torcida Escapulada *Caliu Gracienc Supporters Club *Stadium & Club featured on Blog *Futbolme.com profile *CE Europe stats in Campionat de Catalunya *CE Europa in Copa Catalunya * Category:Football clubs in Catalonia Category:Football clubs in Barcelona Category:Football clubs in Spain Category:Association football clubs established in 1907 Category:Catalan basketball teams Category:Basketball teams in Spain Category:Gràcia Category:1907 establishments in Spain ca:Club Esportiu Europa de:CE Europa es:Club Esportiu Europa fr:Club Esportiu Europa ga:Club Esportiu Europa gl:Club Esportiu Europa it:Club Esportiu Europa lt:CE Europa hu:CE Europa nl:CE Europa no:CE Europa pt:CE Europa ru:Европа (футбольный клуб) fi:CE Europa